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Out candidates in Berkeley
Turning Tenderloin green
ARTS
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Lily Tomlin
Nightlife Events
The
www.ebar.com
Since 1971, the newspaper of record for the San Francisco Bay Area LGBTQ community
Vol. 48 • No. 37 • September 13-19, 2018
SF police panel to discuss Egg case
by Ed Walsh
A Supervisor Catherine Stefani
Rick Gerharter
Siblings’ struggles drive SF Supe Stefani
by Matthew S. Bajko
T
he personal has proved to be political for San Francisco Supervisor Catherine Stefani since being appointed in January as the representative for Cow Hollow, the Marina, Russian Hill, and Pacific Heights. In March, when voting to rename a terminal at San Francisco International Airport in honor of the late gay rights icon and city supervisor Harvey Milk, Stefani spoke of how her younger sister, Christine Stefani, struggled to come out as a lesbian to their Italian Catholic family in the Central Valley where they lived. Recalling her support for the naming proposal during a recent editorial board meeting with the Bay Area Reporter, Stefani said it was one of the “most emotional votes” she has cast during the eight months she has served on the board. Former supervisor Mark Farrell named Stefani to his District 2 seat in January after a majority of the board elected him mayor following the sudden death in December of then-mayor Ed Lee. “What I saw my sister go through in the 1990s coming out was torture for her. She was engaged to a man because she thought she had to do that,” recalled Stefani, 48, a former senior aide to both Farrell and his predecessor, supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier. Today, Christine Stefani, 42, lives in Davis with her partner of two years and works as a nurse in the maternity ward of a local hospital. Four years ago, at the invitation of her older sister, Christine Stefani and her mother marched together in San Francisco’s annual Pride parade for the first time with Farrell’s contingent. “When I came out at 21, my mom wasn’t very accepting and we didn’t have the best relationship for a couple years. Fast forward to my mom doing her own research with PFLAG and other organizations to fully accept me,” she recalled. “Then to march in the Pride parade with me was such a big experience. It brings tears to my eyes.” Last month, Catherine Stefani was one of the few local politicians to withdraw her endorsement for a school board candidate when her past comments opposing transgender rights were highlighted in media reports. The decision didn’t surprise her sibling. “My sister always has been an advocate and always supported gay and lesbian rights. She has been supportive of me 110 percent since I came out,” Christine Stefani told the B.A.R. As the city grapples with how to address rampant intravenous drug use on the streets, substance abuse See page 12 >>
San Francisco police commissioner and a city supervisor are weighing in with concerns about the police handling of the case of Brian Egg, whose headless torso is believed to have been left in a fish tank in his South of Market house. Egg’s neighbors have voiced anger and frustration that their concerns over Egg’s disappearance were not taken seriously. Lesbian San Francisco Police Commissioner Petra DeJesus told the Bay Area Reporter last week that she has questions and concerns about how police handled the investigation and plans to raise them during the commission’s regularly scheduled meeting Wednesday evening, September 12. [The meeting is after the print edition of the B.A.R. goes to press.] DeJesus said she planned to bring a copy of the B.A.R. with her to the meeting to address some of the criticism raised by the paper last week in an editorial, as well as a news article, on the case. She said she wanted to gather as many facts as possible on the case before passing judgment on the actions by police. Gay San Francisco District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who chairs the board’s public safety and neighborhood services committee, is also calling for answers. “Brian Egg’s death is a tragic loss for the
Rick Gerharter
Lee Brandon Espinosa lights a candle in memory of Brian Egg during a vigil outside Egg’s home Tuesday, September 11, which would have been Egg’s 66th birthday.
LGBTQ community. I believe that his friends, neighbors, and the greater community deserve an explanation as to why the SFPD handled the case in the way that they did,” Mandelman wrote in a statement to the B.A.R. “Ultimately, I hope law enforcement can bring justice and closure for his friends and family, and restore a sense of safety to his neighbors.” Egg’s home, at 228 Clara Street, is part of District 6, represented by Supervisor Jane Kim. An
Kids rule at Oakland Pride by Jack Shea
K
ids. There were hundreds of them marching in this year’s Oakland Pride parade. They led off the festivities marching with Our Family Coalition, which used the mini train from Children’s Fairyland, and they continued walking with their families in contingents representing schools, churches, the library, and more. Stomper, the Oakland A’s elephant mascot, even joined in the fun, donning an A’s and rainbow-themed flag during the September 9 parade. In short, Oakland has maintained its tradition as a very family-friendly Pride event, and, as always, celebrated the rich diversity of the East Bay. This was Oakland’s ninth annual Pride celebration and fifth annual parade. Pride officials said this year’s event was the biggest yet. “It was absolutely great, and definitely our biggest year yet,” Carlos Uribe, co-chair of the Pride board, wrote in an email Tuesday. “We’re looking at, or around, 52,000 in attendance. We’ve been floating below 50,000 for the last few years and I think that we definitely blew that out of the water.” Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf again rode in her flame-shooting snail car (right after the Oakland Fire Department’s contingent), but this year she wore a custom-designed rainbow flag-themed dress that was a hit at the East Bay Stonewall Democratic Club’s annual Pride Breakfast, where she spoke earlier Sunday morning. “I’m thankful I’m not in jail yet,” she quipped,
Jane Philomen Cleland
Tadeo Ramos-Grima, 6, joined mom Josie Ramos-Grima in the Tykes on Trikes contingent at the Oakland Pride parade September 9.
a reference to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and President Donald Trump, who have harshly criticized her for issuing a warning earlier this year ahead of a sweep by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Schaaf thanked club members “for having my back as mayor.” Other parade highlights included the Feelmore Gallery contingent. An adult pleasure products store located on Telegraph Avenue, Feelmore
{ FIRST OF THREE SECTIONS }
Now I’m Here
The sixth novel by Lambda Literary Award-winning author Jim Provenzano
Sept. 20
aide to Kim responded to the B.A.R. Monday, September 10, and asked for a list of questions. No response has been received by press time. San Francisco Police Chief William Scott has not responded to the B.A.R.’s requests for comment. Friends of Egg’s held a vigil in front of his house Tuesday, September 11, which would have been his 66th birthday. Neighbors lit candles and shared photos of Egg, who had once worked as a bartender at the Stud. See page 13 >>
Release event - Dog Eared Books with Peter Fogel performing songs by Queen 7pm. 489 Castro Street, San Francisco, CA • www.jimprovenzano.com
owner Nenna Joiner, an African-American lesbian, drove the vintage ice cream truck that she uses as a pop-up store on weekends. Legacies of the Pacific’s Polynesian dancers, whose grass skirts were in rainbow flag colors, proved to be popular with the crowd. At the festival, booths filled Franklin Street as candidates for office, LGBT organizations, nonprofits, and vendors enjoyed the large crowd. Entertainers focused on music of empowerment and activism. See page 12 >>